The Death Mage Who Doesn t Want a Fourth Time

Chapter 350: The instinct awakens

Vandalieu’s rapid-fire ‘World Piercing Destructive Hollow Cannon’ was a version where he fired after only a short time spent concentrating his Mana. By sacrificing power, he shortened the time needed to cast the spell. Its targets, Rikudou and Heinz, began moving at the same time.

Rikudou quickly gathered his own Mana in order to cast a spell to block the ‘World Piercing Destructive Hollow Cannon.’

Meanwhile, Heinz recited an incantation. “‘Radiant Turn!’”

This was not a defensive spell; it was a spell that increased the speed of his movement. Heinz had been waiting for Vandalieu to target him and Rikudou at the same time, and he had been ready to cast this spell.

But it wasn’t Vandalieu who became flustered by this, but Rikudou.

“What?! ‘Magic Absorption Shield!” Rikudou shouted.

He finished casting his defensive spell, but even with the power of the ‘World Piercing Destructive Hollow Cannon’ having been significantly reduced, it was difficult for him to block it completely.

He shouted loudly in exertion as he squeezed out as much of his Mana as he could to stop the torrent of powerful black Mana that streamed towards him. But the shield of Mana that Rikudou had produced looked like it would be pierced at any moment.

But with this, I should be able to manage to avoid being lethally wounded! If I don’t die, then this body that’s made from the fragments of the Demon King can quickly regenerate! Rikudou thought.

He knew that he would somehow survive this attack. But a moment later–

… Hmm?

Rikudou saw Vandalieu, who was firing the rapid-fire ‘World Piercing Destructive Hollow Cannon’ from one hand, move again.

“‘World Piercing Destructive Hollow Cannon,’” Vandalieu said.

He raised his other hand and fired a second ‘World Piercing Destructive Hollow Cannon.’ But he hadn’t fired it at Rikudou, nor was it aimed at Heinz and his companions; it was flying in a completely different direction.

“W-what are you doing?!” Heinz shouted.

Having escaped the rapid-fire ‘World Piercing Destructive Hollow Cannon,’ he and his companions watched in bewilderment but stayed wary of what Vandalieu might do next.

But Rikudou knew what Vandalieu intended to do, and a chill ran across his entire body.

“‘Teleportation gate,’” murmured Gufadgarn.

A teleportation gate appeared in the path of the ‘World Piercing Destructive Hollow Cannon,’ and its exit appeared behind Rikudou.

“‘Magic Absorption Shield!’ So, you were able to fire two at the same tiiiiime!” he bellowed in fury.

The moment Rikudou cast a second defensive spell at his back, the ‘World Piercing Destructive Hollow Cannon’ crashed into it.

“I’ve let one of my targets get away, but I shall make sure to crush the one that I’ve caught,” Vandalieu said.

He had fired the first ‘World Piercing Destructive Hollow Cannon’ to prevent Rikudou and Heinz from moving. The real attack lay in the second ‘World Piercing Destructive Hollow Cannon,’ which had been fired with plenty of Mana concentrated in it. Gufadgarn’s teleportation gate had changed its trajectory so that it would strike the back of his immobilized targets in a pincer attack.

With this, he would be able to defeat his targets that might be able to survive a single cast of his spell… Even in the worst-case scenario, they would certainly be almost fatally wounded.

Heinz had managed to escape, but Vandalieu wasn’t worried about that. Heinz wasn’t attacking Vandalieu to protect Rikudou, nor was he trying to attack the people of Orbaume.

It would be difficult to justify killing Heinz and his companions, who were S-class adventurers and honorary nobles, after Rikudou was already defeated. Thus, he didn’t even mind if they simply ran away, but–

“Has he done it?!” exclaimed Edgar.

“No, not yet!” said Heinz.

It seemed that they had no intention of running away. It was unlikely that they would be willing to do so until they witnessed Rikudou’s death with their own eyes.

I suppose I have no choice but to be pleased that they’re not attacking me while I’m unable to move because I’m attacking Rikudou, Vandalieu thought.

But simultaneously casting two ‘World Piercing Destructive Hollow Cannons’ took a great toll on him. If he didn’t have the Staff of Five Sins, his arms would have broken apart from the recoil, scattering pieces of his flesh onto the ground below… though the only consequence of that would be that there would be more Demon King Familiars to exterminate the monsters at ground level.

Meanwhile, Rikudou groaned as he resisted his own destruction with all his might. “Damn you, you wannabe idol!” he cursed.

The Demon King Familiar in Prime Minister Tercatanis’s office was firing numerous beams of light at Rikudou through the window. With a gaze filled with hatred, he looked down at Kanako, who was replacing the Demon Kings’ luminescent organs and eyeballs that were necessary to fire those beams of light.

But he was under so much pressure that even looking down at Kanako had taken some time.

Rikudou groaned again. “A-at this rate… Demon King’s right arm, left arm!”

He activated the Demon King’s right arm and left arm, which he had kept concealed as one of his trump cards. Multiple of the fragments that Tercatanis had gathered, such as the Demon King’s right thumb and left wrist, had fused to form these arms.

These arms had extraordinary strength, hardness, and anti-magic properties. Rikudou attempted to use these to suppress the ‘World Piercing Destructive Hollow Cannon,’ but… they began tearing apart, unable to withstand the torrent of black Mana.

Impossible! According to my calculations, the Demon King’s right arm and left arm should be able to withstand even attacks from Orichalcum weapons! Are you telling me that Vandalieu’s prowess at magic has surpassed that of the Demon King Guduranis?! … No, that’s wrong!

Rikudou poured more Mana into the Demon King’s arms to increase the rate of their regeneration as he desperately looked for a way out of this situation.

That’s wrong! Vandalieu hasn’t surpassed Guduranis! It’s just that I haven’t drawn out the original potential of Guduranis’s body!

The Demon King Guduranis had possessed enough strength to vanquish the Dragon-Emperor God Marduke; even the champion Bellwood would have stood no chance against him on his own.

It was true that Vandalieu was powerful. There was no way to describe him as anything other than extraordinary. But he did not surpass Guduranis in pure fighting strength. If he did, he wouldn’t be having so much trouble fighting against Heinz and his companions.

So then, why? It was because Rikudou wasn’t as powerful as the Demon King Guduranis, either.

Why?! I trained for months on end, and yet I cannot make full use of this body?! And it’s not just Guduranis’s body that I possess; I even have fragments of his soul! Just what must I do to surpass Guduranis… or stand equal to him?!